Hair comb with mechanical fingers



Nov. 11, 1958 w. H. YFUTTERER HAIR coMB WITH MECHANICAL FINGERS Filed July 11, 1957 w. .Sm

United States Patent() 2,859,754 HAIR CoMB WITH MECHANICAL FINGERS William H. Futterer, Key West, Fla. Application July 11, 1957, Serial No. 671,294

4 Claims. (Cl. 132-145) This invention relates toa comb which has been designed and constructed to temporarily clamp itself on the hair of the person whose hair is being cut, trimmed, curled or otherwise handled for treatment. i

More particularly, a novel comb has been devised to assist the user thereof (barber, hair dresser or individual) to effectually employ the comb in a manner not heretofore possible. To this end, the teeth of the comb are widely spaced apart and are provided with pivotally mounted mechanical fingers. These fingers are so mounted and arranged that they can be swung out from the teeth in which they are normally sheathed and concealed to bridge the adjacent spaces. As the fingers come into play they gather and bunch the strands of hair and form spaced tufts, the free ends of which are then available to permit one to systematically and orderly hold and cut the same.

III` carrying out the invention, in a preferred embodiment thereof, the back of the comb is provided at one end with a handle. Also, it is of hollow sectional construction and so designed and constructed that a springreturn push-pull rod is mounted for reciprocation therein, said rod having operating connection with adjacent actuating ends of the pivoted fingers, whereby all of the lingers may be simultaneously projected from their normally sheathed and concealed positions to their spacebridging hair gathering and clamping positions. To successfully accomplish this the push-pull rod is provided with a trigger which may be releasably locked in a position wherein the finger-operating rod functions to hold the fingers in the positions to which they have been moved for use.

Other objects, features and advantages will become more readily apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing, wherein like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughout the views:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a hair comb embodying the aforementioned mechanical fingers and the means for tripping and releasing the same.

Fig. 2 is a view, slightly enlarged, with parts in section and elevation, the View being taken on the plane of the line 2 2 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 3 is a further enlarged transverse or cross section taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a detail view of the trigger and its keeper seat, the view being on the plane of the line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a view partly in section and partly in elevation based on the showing seen in Fig. 1 with the cover plate of the so-called comb back removed.

Referring now to the views of the drawing the comb will be of suitable material, size and appearance with one end portion fashioned into an appropriate handle. The part of the body referred to as the back is denoted as an entity by the numeral 8. This is generally cylindrical in cross-section as seen in Fig. 3. One half portion of the back is cut away as seen in Fig. 5 to provide end shoulders 12 and 14 and the removable cover section 16 is fitted in place between the shouldersasillstrated.

The provision of suitably aligned holes 18 and sockets `20 (Fig. 5) serve to accommodate the fastenersv 22` (Fig.

2). The opposed faces of the sections 10 and 16 are grooved to provide a cylindrical-like chamber thus' rendering the back hollow as before stated. In this cylinder or chamber the push-pull rod or plunger 24 is mounted as shown in Figs. 2 and 5 in particular. A coil spring 26 is attached at 28 to the right hand-.end rof the 'rod and the other end of the spring is anchored securely in Aplace as at 30. The purpose-of the-spring is to retract and return the'push-pull rod to the normal ready-tofunction position shown in Fig. `2. Longitudinally spaced notches 32 serve to receive the upper end portions 34 of the hair bunching` and clamping fingers 36 therein. With reference to Fig. 2it will be noticed thatjthestationary lateral longitudinally spaced teeth may bedescribed as embodying an outermost' tooth 38 havinga recess or pocket 40 formed therein and an innermost tooth 42 having a similar recess or pocket 44. The intervening or main teeth, separatelyl denoted by the numeral 46 are slotted, the slots being denoted at 48 and opening through the forward or leading edges of the respective teeth. These slotted teeth serve to house or sheathe the downwardly narrowed or tapering fingers therein. When the fingers are enclosed they are concealed. At this time, the intermediate portion of each finger bears against a stop web or shoulder 50 and the pointed end of the finger rests against a similar stop shoulder 52. Thus the movement of the teeth in a direction from right to left is limited so that the teeth are properly contained in the recesses or pockets of the respective comb teeth. By pivotally mounting the upper median portions S4 of the fingers they are allowed to swing forwardly and rearwardly to assume the out-ofthe-Way or sheathed position illustrated in Fig. 2 or the projected space bridging positions seen in Fig. 5 When the fingers are projected to the last named position they not only bridge the wide space between the teeth but do so in an oblique angled manner to define a limited pocket of the form seen at 56 in Fig. 5. It is in these confined spaces or pockets 56 that the strands of hair (not shown) are gathered, bunched and transformed into the desired tufts.

With the individual tufts of hair divided, the barber, hair dresser or individual user may readily and without confusion cut, curl, or treat the tip ends of the strands in a step-by-step and therefore orderly manner.

There is a slot 58 (Fig. 4) formed in the bottom of the section 10 and this has notches 60 and 62 to accommodate the stem or shank 64 of the trigger. The trigger has a knob 66. With this construction the fingers may be retracted and sheathed to assume an out-of-the-way position or projected to assume their operating position, where they are locked, as it were, to clampingly hold the comb on the users hair.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. For use by barbers, hair dressers, and individuals; a hair comb comprising a bodyv having an elongated back provided with laterally directed longitudinally spaced combing teeth, said body having a sectional hollow back, a spring-returned push-pull rod member reciprocable within the hollow portion of said back, the majority of said teeth being slotted lengthwise and each slotted tooth Patented Nov. 11, 1958 l.

l'having'the additimiai function of a sheath, a anger operatively connecting the upper ends of said iingers to said rodmember ,forfoperation in conjunction with said "rdmneiibeli l "12; Thestrctnfedened in claimt and wherein said rfdmnbrl's provided'with a trigger' operating in a iiitchedslot`providedftherefor.atV vone end'portion of saidl'aaclr.r

f 3. The' structure dened in claim 2, and wherein the slt'in eachtootlihas spcedabutments providing stops, :Said-stops serving' toV liinit' the pivotal movement of the 'nger'in`one"di'rection. Y

4; For use by barbers, hair dressers, and individuals; a'hai'rfcorrb comprising a' body h'aving an elongated back 'provided with `laterally directed longitudinally spaced cbing teeth, and means carried` by' said' teeth for gathering',`bunching and Vtemporarily holding the thus bncli'ed strands of hair, whereby to'permit the fre'eends to bey cut, trimmed, curled or`otherwse handled, said nieas being characterized by a plurality of mechanical fingers, the latter being pivotally mounted, retractible and projectible and, when retracted beingsheathed out References Cited inthe le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 597,121 Norton Ian. 11, 1898 831,111 Shedlock Sept. 18, 1906 1,643,168 Nevotti Sept. 20, 1927 1,711,627 Willber et al. May 7, 1929 2,808,062 Schitman Oct. l, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 363,418 Great Britain Dec. 24, 1931 

